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An American Family

Documentary
1973
1 Season
12 Episodes
EN
Ended

About

Originally intended as a chronicle of the daily life of the Louds, a Santa Barbara upper-middle-class family, the groundbreaking program documented the breakup of the family via the separation and subsequent divorce of parents Bill and Pat Loud.

#1970s#american way of life#public television#slice of life#divorce#teenage rebellion#marital problem#cinéma vérité#broken family#santa barbara, california#fly-on-the-wall#chelsea hotel#gay history#reality tv#suburban life

Cast

PL

Pat Loud

as Self

BL

Bill Loud

as Self

LL

Lance Loud

as Self

KL

Kevin Loud

as Self

GL

Grant Loud

as Self

DL

Delilah Loud

as Self

ML

Michelle Loud

as Self

CG

Craig Gilbert

as Narrator (voice)

Episodes

Season 1

See all 12episodes →
Episode 1
E1

Episode 1

Jan 11, 197358m

Opens with scenes from the last day of filming, December 31, 1971. Pat Loud and four of her children are having a New Year's Eve party in their Santa Barbara, California, home. Bill and Pat's marriage has ended in separation. Their eldest son, Lance, is still living in New York. The scene changes to the first days of filming when the family gathers for an early breakfast one morning in mid-May, 1971.

Episode 2
E2

Episode 2

Jan 18, 197358m

Pat visits her son Lance in New York City. She takes a room in his hotel, the Chelsea, and spends a week with him meeting his circle of friends.

Episode 3
E3

Episode 3

Jan 25, 197358m

Before returning from New York, Pat stops in Baltimore to check on a shipment that Bill is expecting. Bill meets her plane; they go out to lunch, during which they discuss their children. Later, they attend a dance recital featuring their daughters Delilah and Michele.

Episode 4
E4

Episode 4

Feb 1, 197358m

Pat returns to her Eugene, Oregon birthplace, and visits her mother, who still lives there. They drive around town, stopping at the important places in Pat's early life and the first years of her marriage. After attending her mother's birthday party, Pat ereturns home.

Episode 5
E5

Episode 5

Feb 8, 197358m

The girls are leaving with Pat for a vacation in Taos, New Mexico; Kevin leaves for Australia with Bill's business associate; and Lance calls the family from New York.

Episode 6
E6

Episode 6

Feb 15, 197359m

After Pat and Michele return from Taos, Pat has lunch with Bill and again the topic of discussion is their children. Lance is visiting Paris with a friend. A brush-fire in the hills threatens the Loud home.

Episode 7
E7

Episode 7

Feb 22, 197358m

The growing antagonism between Pat and Bill comes out in the open. Grant is criticized by his parents for not working hard enough, and, shortly afterward, gets into an accident while driving home from work.

Episode 8
E8

Episode 8

Mar 1, 197357m

While Bill is away on business, Pat decides to file for divorce. She spends an evening with her brother and sister-in-law, discussing this decision.

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